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Apr 29, 2014

Disney Research is rely pushing many new inventive 3d printing technologies and projects. Looks like the next generation of toys will be 3d printed.
This is a 3d printable speaker that can reproduce hearable sound and interact with your computer by emitting a sound that human hearing can not perceive.

From video description:

Authors:
Yoshio Ishiguro, Ivan Poupyrev

Abstract:

We propose technology for designing and manufacturing interactive 3D printed speakers. With the proposed technology, sound reproduction can easily be integrated into various objects at the design stage and little assembly is required.

The speaker can take the shape of anything from an abstract spiral to a rubber duck, opening new opportunities in product design. Furthermore, both audible sound and inaudible ultrasound can be produced with the same design, allowing for identifying and tracking 3D printed objects in space using common integrated microphones. The design of 3D printed speakers is based on electrostatic loudspeaker technology first explored in the early 1930s but not broadly applied until now. These speakers are simpler than common electromagnetic speakers, while allowing for sound reproduction at 60 dB levels with arbitrary directivity ranging from focused to omnidirectional.

Rabbit Proto advanced extruder for electronics 3d printing is showcased in this video. They print fully working game controller with conductive ink.
Rabbit Proto is a print head add-on that easily plugs into your 3D printer, enabling it to print complex conductive traces within your 3D design. The project source code, documentation, and example designs are open source and available on GitHub.
Here are the pre-order prices and specs:

Apr 28, 2014

Disney Research released this video and paper about 3d printing soft felt structures with active components such as electronics. They basically show how to 3d print a high tech felt teddy bear or other soft toys. Mehtod could be described as additive 3d knitting.
The machine they are doing it on looks like DIY printer type machine, however I don't think they will open source it.
It is possible this will be commercialized ...

ZeGo is multifunctional delta configuration robot with multiple tool heads. It is much more then just a 3d printer. All tools can be easily replaced via magnetic joint attachments. This delta and other hybrid multitool machines are step closer towards desktop production cell. It would be interesting feature if several machines of this type could be linked and connected with some sort of transport platform. Small robotic factory on a table ...

ZeGo can use following tools:

Plotter – An automatic drawing device used on paper or LCD sketchpads.

I think this is the main reason Foodini failed, too many steps, you have to cook and prepare ingredients yourself, load it (and probably clean it afterwords) ...

Foodini food 3d printer technical specification

So why did it fail to reach funding goal? Here are my opinions:

Too complex procedure: you have to prepare the printing paste, process the food items, maybe cook them, load them, probably clean them form the printer. Ease of use is lost there, from early presentations I thought it will come with some sort of ready cartridges. I probably misunderstood the concept

Target markets: since there is no ease of use, professional chefs can do everything by hand or give the task of making those complex food decorative elements to novice staff. Professionals don't need machines, it is also linked to professional pride and craft culture. Home users don't need such a machine because they want to do-it-themselves even if the results are far worst then machine made meals. They want to own their work.

This is a big signal to Foodini team to rethink their strategy ... but that's just my two cents ...

Wide choice of printing materials: currently up to 4 different resins with a variety of properties.

Build Area: 102mm x 76,8mm x 180mm

It will be priced at 2.895€ (plus VAT where applicable) when available for direct pruchase

They have also developed a palette of resins with different properties and applications:

STANDARD: Entry level resin. Affordable and suitable for general 3d printing needs, from figurines to maquettes or quick prototypes.

PROTOTYPING: A hard and thought material, aimed at print objects that require improved physical properties. It has similar properties as ABS or Nylon plastic. Ideal for electronic housings, cogs, Iphone holders

ELASTIC: A resin with very peculiar properties: It's elastic and flexible. This opens up a world of options for your prototypes and props!

WAXY: It demonstrates similar properties to investment casting waxes. Once you print your model you will be able to use the lost wax investment process and cast your designs to bronze, silver, gold or any meltable metal. This resin is particularly well suited for jewelers and miniature figurines manufacturers.

They claim their DLP technology is superior to laser based resin 3d printers because:

Resolution: With DLP (Direct Light Processing) we can reach feature details of 50 microns, which is a six-fold improvement compared to Laser 3d printers that are limited by the geometry of the Laser beam (pointer diameter, varying shape, focus and raster speed).

Build Times: The Stalactite 102 builds each layer within a constant exposure time, making the size of the object within the X/Y build area independent of the build time. It doesn't matter how many objects you fit within the build area, print times will always remain the same, depending solely on the number of layers in the Z-axis. There's no rastering time, no head or pointer movement process, as is prevalent in the FDM, Inkjet and Laser 3D printing technologies.

Stalactite is currently on Indigogo, ypu can get it at much lower price:

Apr 23, 2014

RotoMAAK is DIY rotational casting machine that can produce casted resin models fast. Molds can be made from 3d printed objects, so you can produce small series very fast.

From Kickstarter description:

The RotoMAAK

Rotational Casting, also known as Rotocasting or Hollow Casting, is a molding process for creating many kinds of items, mostly hollow in form and typically made of plastic. The RotoMAAK rotocaster was born out of the desire to have a process by which Makers could scale up production of parts using rotational casting technology when 3D printing a small production run becomes cost and time prohibitive.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

The RotoMAAK rotational caster consists of a hollow mold and a rotational device that spins the mold in a uniform motion. The hollow mold is filled with a charge or shot weight of air cure resin. It is then inserted into the RotoMAAK where it is slowly rotated (usually around two perpendicular axes) causing the liquid resin to uniformly disperse and stick to the walls of the mold where it slowly cures over time into the shape of the part. In order to maintain an even thickness throughout the part, the mold continues to rotate at all times during casting phase and curing phase. The continuous rotation of the mold also avoids sagging or and part deformation.
The rotocasting process was applied to plastics in the 1940's, but in its early years was rarely used due to a slow process and restriction to a small number of plastics. Over the past two decades, improvements in process control and developments with air cure resin and plastic powders have resulted in a significant increase in its usage for part production.

OUR INNOVATION:

The RotoMAAK rotational casting machine allows the hobbyist to experiment with different casting materials and mold creation for production scale-up of parts to meet customer needs. With the popularity of DIY 3D printing, you now have the ability to create a 3D object in a relatively short amount of time compared to the traditional prototyping or one off manufacturing processes. 3D Printing allows you to create one part faster than traditional processes, but not reproduce it as quickly as mass manufacturing technologies. With rotational casting, you have more options to reproduce many identical parts from a successful print. Additionally it is not limited to 3D printed molds (NO 3D Printer required!), you can create a mold from almost any part and in turn reproduce multiple replicas of that item.

ADVANTAGES

One of the major advantages of rotocasting a hollow part is the savings in materials and weight. If a part's function does not require it to be solid, why cast it solid and waste materials? Instead of using pounds of material to cast a solid piece, you can cast it hollow with ounces of resin, which in turn yields a big cost savings in time and material.
The RotoMAAK also controls the rotation of the mold to ensure a uniform wall thickness that rotating a mold by hand cannot achieve. Some air cure resins,especially the clear varieties, have a cure time of several hours instead of 6-10 minutes. Evenly rotating a mold for hours would prove to be impossible by hand, and a rotational machine like this will allow you to rotational cast clear bottles, glasses, etc. for amazing special effects.

MARKET

First we were looking at ways to increase the speed of reproducing 3D printed parts, either by using a mold that was 3D printed and cast directly from that, or by 3D printing your part and creating a silicon mold from that. However, after talking to many people at Maker Faires, other Makers and hobbyists in the community, and others with manufacturing experience and creative tendencies, we have identified even more niches and applications for this technology than we first envisioned. Many different people: doll makers, artists, model makers, action figure enthusiasts, can go from clay original to silicon mold to producing and selling limited edition reproductions. Candy makers can make custom and personalized hollow chocolate figures, even people making R2-D2 replicas with hollow parts that have been cost prohibitive to have machined. Custom bike builders can even rotational cast specialty/themed turn signal lenses.
The possibilities are endless! Rotational molding parts with the RotoMAAK can save you time and money, and is a bridge between one off part production and the cost of injection molding.

Rotational caster can be your printers best friend. I think we will se more of those machines in the future, and Rotomaak will be open sourced. Kudos for that! Sharing is caring!

They just had finished successful Kickstarter campaign with 211 backers that pledged $52,800 of $17,000 goal. Great work!

Apr 22, 2014

Current FDM 3d printers print in layers which comes with certain limitations and aesthetics. Topolabs is developing software that will enable 3d printing freed from constrains of layered printhead paths. Filament will travel in more organic shapes in all 3 dimensions. It will also enable more curved graphical and decorative surface elements printed directly on the object.

TopoLabs initial software suite will include:

Strength Designer: By printing 3D paths instead of flat layers, you can easily orient the "grain" to your part's inherent shape. Woodworkers have aligned the grain to the task for thousands of years. Now your printer can too.

Flexible Part Designer: Easily create flexible, fabric-like structures. Many products that would typically be made of thick canvas, nylon fabric or leather can now be 3D printed directly in engineering polymers. With some of the new elastomer and advanced material filaments available the possibilities are endless.

Aesthetics & Line Art: start with any sketch or photo and your printer can create beautiful line art on 2D and 3D surfaces of parts. Think of it like embroidery or 3D graphics you can apply to many types of surfaces.

Layer Locking for even more strength: When you do need flat layers, lock them together. Topolabs layer locking tools interconnect adjacent layers using transverse rays to eliminate cleavage planes so your parts won't split. Finally really useful parts in all three directions.

I hate proprietary batteries, non-user replaceable batteries and non-standard power supplies. Companies just change battery design on each model and sell expensive external power accessories. It is a sort of planed obsolescence and a bad business practice.

Alex wanted to use his camera for timelapse photography but the battery couldn't last for two hours. Commercial power adapter was 30 euros so he designed and printed his own external power adapter that replaces the original battery. He published the design on Thingiverse. Problem solved for everyone with
Canon Powershot SX200.

This approach could also be used to print battery adapters that use batteries of different formats. Some batteries and power supplies for older models are impossible to find and projects like this could bring some old hardware back to life or give more features to existing machines.

Apr 21, 2014

Kikai labs developed low cost system for painting 3d printed objects after extrusion with help of custom extruder with attached simple colored markers. It prints a layer and then paints it with the marker befor doing the next layer.

BuildTak is thin advanced plastic sheet that attaches to your printers print bed and improves models sticking to it. It removes the need for Kapton, glue or masking tape.

From product page:

Ideal build surface for FDM 3D printers using ABS and/or PLA.

Key Features:

Installs much easier than masking tape or films typically used and with fewer chances of air bubbles

Protects build plate

Heat resistant and durable, can be reused for many consecutive builds and you can go from ABS to PLA without the need to change the printing surface

Creates an optimal bond between the 3D printed object and build surface that maximizes the chances your object will be held in place for the duration of the print and then allow for clean and easy removal of the object from the build surface.

Works great with ABS, PLA and more without the need to change the surface. And no more pretreatments such as hairspray or acetone slurry!

Easy installation to the bare print bed and clean removal without adhesive residue.

Durable and with optimal care can last for many hours of use while providing extended protection to the original print bed surface.

Creates an optimal bond between the 3D printed object and the build surface for the duration of the print while preventing curling. When builds are complete, the 3D printed object can be cleanly removed with minimal prying or scraping.

Patent-pending heat resistant composition, developed to withstand the typical temperatures used on heated print beds (i.e. 110-125C). With safety in mind, BuildTak is composed of raw materials that are UL flame rated.

BuildTak sheets can feature custom graphics and branding.

It comes in many sizes, packed as a single or multiple pieces package priced $3.25–$720.00.

Getting stuff to stick on the printbed is sometimes like voodoo magic. And it doesn't always work.
You can count on Germans to solve this problem: GermanRepRap developed carbon printbed.
It is attached it to the heat bed with provided clamps and after printing and removing the object you can attache it right back and continue printing. No more glue, juice, tape or bubbles.

It's made from carbon and you can use it and re-use it until it's mechanically broken. Carbon is THE future kids!

There are no videos or independent reviews / tests, but hopefully there will be some in the future.

The price for a 460 x 400 x 0,8 mm size plate is 99.95 EUR and 29.95 EUR for the 230 x 230 x 0,8 mm version.
Plates are made to fit x400 / Protos series of 3d printers, I wish they made them in 200 X 200 mm version also.

Carbon sheets can be found on ebay with varying prices and specifications and they can be cut with simple power tools. I wander if they could be used as DIY carbon print bed ... I don't see any special technology in this ... maybe I'm wrong. Does anyone have any experiance with this?

You can also check out BuildTak that also improves sticking of models with thin advanced plastic sheet:

I recently had the opportunity to work with a great guy named Jose Delgado, Jr., a 53-year old who was born without most of his left hand. I made a 3D printed prosthetic hand for Jose and, after using it for a while, I asked him to give me some honest feedback about how it compares to his more expensive myoelectric prosthesis. This is obviously not an "apples to apples" comparison in terms of the devices, but the real value of a prosthesis comes from how useful it is on a day-to-day basis, and that is the focus of the comparison here.

This 3D printed prosthesis is a completely mechanical design. There are a series of non-flexible cords running along the underside of each finger, connecting to a "tensioning block" on the top rear of the device (the "gauntlet"). The tension is caused by bending the wrist downward. With the wrist in its natural resting position, the fingers are extended, with a natural inward curve. When the wrist is bent 20-30 degrees downward, the non-flexible cords are pulled, causing the fingers and thumb to bend inwards. A second series of flexible cords run along the tops of the fingers, causing the fingers to return automatically when tension is released.

3D printers are coming down in price rapidly. As of today, you can get a self-assembly kit starting at around a few hundred dollars, and a fully assembled "prosumer" level printer is going for around $1000-$2000. In other words, this kind of technology is becoming very accessible, and it's opening up some very exciting possibilities!

Two new videos emerged of ten 3d printed houses from China showing the process in more detail and company behind it. It looks like China really leads the way in this filed now. Their technology prints house modules off-site and then connects in the open. They also stick to traditional house shapes. Roofs are not printed due to technology limitations.
One other important aspect is that they use construction waste as material, which could also lower the prices and help to preserve the environment which is getting very badly damaged in China.

They were developed by the Suzhou Yingchuang Science and Trade Development Co., Ltd. in east China's Jiangsu Province and are currently used as offices.

Main difference between 3Doodler and 3D Yaya is that Yaya uses 1,75 mm filament vs. 3 mm filament of 3Doodler. In other aspects it is almost identical clone ...

Some of its users claim it is similar or even better then the original. It was sold cheaper then 3Doodler but at the moment I can find only that it is more pricey then 3Doodler but 3Doodler is on pre-order and unavailable since they are delivering their Kickstarter orders!?!?!?

So, if you want a 3d drawing pen now 3D Yaya looks like a viable alternative.

Some of the users say that YaYa is sold more cheaply 40-60 USD in Asia but there is is named "3Doodler".

Another competitor available on the market is Myriwell 3D Pen. Here is the review:

It is even cheaper then 3d Yaya and the reviewer writes:

This one turned out to be a nice surprise because I was not expecting this make and model because I had ordered one of the older 3Doodler clones. Nonetheless, this pen doesn't need to pause frequently to regain working temperature (like the 3Doodler does), and it feeds filament very well. It uses 1.75mm diameter ABS filament that has become the standard for fused deposition modeling 3D printing. The only issue we've seen so far is that it is difficult to print in the air as the 3Doodler can.

You can buy it here:

Here is Makible Scribble demonstrated couple a months before 3Doodler went into sales. They claim the video was made in time when 3Doodler Kickstarter begun. They also claim it features their propitiatory heating technology which makes it dangerously hot only at the small area on the tip. It looks like the Scribble never went into full marketing and sales.

Looks like the 3d drawing pen market is in some sort of uncertainty ...

More reacently 3Doodler is getting more competition with new generation of 3d drawing pens like LIX.

What I am interested in is : can you make your own DIY version of 3d drawing pen?

How the State Department is shutting down Wilson's 3-D printable gun business

What it's like to be surveilled by the Department of Homeland Security

What is the Liberator 3-D printed gun?

How printable guns will change the dynamic of political power.

Will this challenge to the state lead to more personal freedom?

How does the Internet break down the politics of gun control?

What is Dark Wallet? And what's wrong with Bitcoin?

From video description:

"Legal encapsulation is not effectively possible," declares Cody Wilson of Defense Distributed, makers of the world's first gun made via 3D printing technology. "So it's fun to kind of challenge the state to greater and greater levels of its own hyper-statism."

Last year, Wilson and crew unveiled The Liberator, a plastic pistol they created on a 3D printer that fired a shot heard around the world. Then they put the 3D-printing files (or CADs) up on the Internet for free. To folks interested in cutting-edge technology and decentralized experiments in living, Wilson's gun symbolized an age of uncontrollable freedom. To lawmakers, it symbolized a threat that moved faster than, well, a speeding bullet. The State Department, in fact, shut down Defense Distributed's ability to disseminate the gun files on the Internet, claiming the nonprofit was violating federal rules about exporting munitions.

A self-declared crypto-anarchist, the 26-year-old Wilson is fighting the situation in court—and relishing every minute of his battle with the government.While he's aggressively challenging restrictions on 3D-printed guns, Wilson is also working on an innovative Bitcoin project called Dark Wallet, which would further anonymize financial transactions on the Web, and a book intended to inspire a new generation of digital libertarians.

This is big step forward in availability of this technology to home and prosumer users. 3D Systems is entering strong into this market with this product. It is priced at 4900 USD.
This may mark a milestone in moving away from FFF printers for big companies in the field.

As you may notice, this SLA machine has a very small print volume, and it probably originated in dental / jewelry targeted printers. However, as 3D Systems, as a major player moves in this DIY segment with this technology, other big companies (such as Makerbot) will have to follow. There are definitely better SLA machines in the market for home segment, but from smaller companies. FFF 3d printers market is very saturated so DIY home SLA printers could be the next step for the entire industry.

3D Systems already entered this market segment with Projet 1000 / 1500 series, but those machines are bulky and priced over 10000 USD.

One good thing about this is tha we will probably see much cheaper and better high end SLA machines aimed ad DIY users.

Apr 13, 2014

Lix is the new 3d drawing pen with elegant aluminum body with small size. It is almost the same size as simple ball pen. It can be powered by USB port and you can carry it with you everywhere. Both ABS and PLA fulament can be used to create 3d drawings.

LIX appears to have entered into the start of their Kickstarter campaign with an idea, and a very basic prototype. Their business plan seems to be changing and evolving based on two main factors. One is feedback from their backers, and the other is the huge demand that they have unexpectedly received for their future product.LIX has announced that they are going to be hiring an engineering company to work on the newest prototype of the pen. The engineering firm that is being assigned to this project, will need more time in order to create a high quality product. They expect to have to redesign some of the aspects of the LIX Pen, to prepare it for mass-production.

They also changed their shipment schedule and postponed the dates ... good luck to the backers ...